The Diagnosis
Author: Alan Lightman
Genre: Fiction
Year: 2000
Rating: 6 of 10
I picked up this book because I had read Einstein’s Dreams and found it to be a charming book. This novel was so different in nature that it was almost surprising. The Diagnosis is a story about losing one’s way in life and experiencing psychosomatic illness (although the book never delivers that this is actually the case). It is written in a tedious, almost obsessive compulsive manner reminiscent of American Psycho. At times too tedious with many epistolary interruptions into email correspondence. The book states that its genre is psychological fiction, but I would redefine it as yuppie existentialism. While it was an interesting read I found it difficult to relate to the first world problems experienced by the characters. I also found the ending to be unsatisfactory if judged as a traditional narrative but acceptable in existential terms. Many loose ends were left and I walked away not certain if I really found the book that compelling.
Purchase: Buy!